Sleeping Refuge
by YouThinkYouNoeMe
Summary: The story of a young woman who finds herself a job in WWE, as well as some unexpected things. Characters are Randy Orton, Kevin Nash, Trish Stratus, HBK, more.
1. Default Chapter

PART ONE

JUNE 9, 2003

Michelle Prinston wiped the sweat off of her brow, tucking a strand of hair that had fallen from her ponytail behind her ear.  Putting a WWE set together was not an easy job.  It was extremely hard work, and it wasn't exactly fun either.  Then again, Michelle *was* a WWE employee, and that meant she was one step closer to her *real* dream, being a WWE Superstar.  Her job as a ring and set constructor came about around a year ago.  She had been working in a law firm and was doing fairly well as an attorney, but then the firm buckled out of nowhere, leaving her jobless.  That was when she put in a phone call to her old high school friend Trish Stratus.  She told Trish that she didn't want to sound desperate, but she really needed a job.  She asked the blonde to approach Vince about possibly hiring her.  She had prior ring training, so she knew how to wrestle.  Trish put in a word to Vince who, after heavy persuasion on the Canadian diva's part, decided to hire her after all.  However, he said that there was no way he would hire her as a wrestler merely on the recommendation of a high school friend.  He explained that the only real opening he had was in the ring crew, specifically the Raw ring crew.  Though it wasn't what she really wanted, Michelle hadn't expected to be offered a job at all, so she graciously accepted his offer.  And now, here she was, assembling a ring she hoped to one day wrestle in.

"Hey Michelle," a voice called, catching her attention.

"Yeah?" she asked, turning to face Tony, another crew member, her supervisor.

"Why don't you take a break?  You look exhausted," he suggested, adjusting his baseball cap.  Michelle smiled, nodding in agreement as she broke from her work and stood.  Tony was the sweetest guy, and a great man to have as a supervisor.  He had been putting WWE rings together for over twenty years, and he had rarely seen women working on the crew.  He had a huge amount of respect for her for that, and he often checked on her during the course of the day to see if she was alright.

"Okay… thanks Tony," she agreed, heading up the ramp to the backstage area.  

As she walked up the ramp, she couldn't help but imagine what it would be like to be doing so during a show.  She inhaled deeply, imagining a crowd on its feet, cheering wildly for her.  It would be awesome to experience that for real one day.  She wiped the sweat off her forehead one more time, stepping back through the curtain.  As she made her way through the backstage area, she nodded hello to a few of the wrestlers.  Being friends with Trish Stratus had really helped her make friends with some of the WWE Superstars.  She had fit right in and with Trish's help had been accepted by all of them as family.  She sighed tiredly, thinking of finding a place where she could lay down for a little while.  She continued on the down the hall, laughing when Shane Helms walked by her and stuck his tongue out at her.  She shook her head, saying hi to him before walking by.

"Hey Chelle, wait up!" a female voice called.  Michelle turned around, smiling tiredly when she saw Trish coming towards her, with Stacy Keibler close behind.

"Hey guys," she said, waving to the two blonde women.

"Hey, you done working already?" Trish asked curiously, eyeing her friend.  Yawning loudly, Michelle nodded.

"For now… Tony told me to take a break.  I'm really wiped out.  Hey, do you guys think I could use your locker room to take a nap or something?" she asked hopefully.  The two women nodded.

"Sure," Stacy said.  "I doubt the other girls would mind.  We were just headed there anyway, just come along with us."  Michelle nodded, walking along with the two girls.  After turning a corner and going down one more hall, they finally reached the Women's Locker Room.  They went inside and shut the door, not noticing the three men standing across the hall.

Once they were inside, the three of them said hello to Lisa Moretti and Terri Runnels.  Then, they made their way to the back of the room.  Trish and Stacy flopped down in arm chairs, while Michelle walked over and took a seat on the leather couch.  They sat quietly for a few minutes, the three women talking about nothing in particular.  Then, Trish's cell phone rang, and when she answered, it was Vince McMahon.  She spoke briefly with the Chairman, and then hung the phone up.

"Shit… Stace, we have to go.  We were supposed to be in the ring ten minutes ago.  Fit is down there and so are the rest of the girls.  Sorry Chelli, but we have to leave.  You can just wait here, and take a nap if you want," she said, shaking her head.

"Okay, that's cool.  I'll see you in a little while then," Michelle nodded, resting back on the couch.  She waved as the two blonde women made their way out of the room, pulling the door closed behind them.  Michelle sighed tiredly, laying back and closing her eyes.  Within minutes, the exhaustion overcame her, and she was fast asleep.

OUTSIDE THE LOCKER ROOM 

Randy Orton stood perched up against the wall in the hallway, talking with Shawn Michaels and Andrew Martin.  The three men had been standing there for a good twenty minutes talking, mainly about hockey, and Randy's recent return from a foot injury.

"Let's see if you can make it more than a month without hurting anything," Drew said jokingly.  

Randy shook his head, laughing quietly.  He had been particularly unlucky in the injury department as of late.  He had really messed up his shoulder awhile back, an injury he was still rehabbing today.  After surgery and months of waiting, he had finally been medically cleared to wrestle again.  It seemed as thought he'd be doing great… he was stronger than ever, and Vince decided to put him in a stable with Triple H Ric Flair, and Dave Batista, which would no doubt be good for his career.  Everything seemed to be going his way, until one night at a house show.  In a match with the Dudley Boys, he, Dave, and Bubba all botched a move, causing them to tumble down to the ring.  Dave had suffered the worst injury, tearing a tricep that he later re-tore during rehabilitation.  Bubba had only had a minor back injury and returned after a few weeks, but Randy on the other hand had broken a toe.  The bone hadn't just snapped, but his whole toe had been completely snapped up into a 90 degree angle from his foot.  That injury was agonizing.  He couldn't walk for weeks without going through excruciating pain.  What was even worse than the physical pain was the mental torture it put him through.  He had just returned from that shoulder injury and had been promised a spot in the lead heel group on Raw, only to be placed back on the injured list a few weeks after.

"I'll try," Randy replied.  Shawn shook his head and laughed… the kid had a tough couple of months, and it was definitely good to see him back.

"So, did Vince say they're going to put Evolution back together now?" he asked out of curiosity.  Randy grinned, nodding proudly.

"Yup… I'm so excited about that, getting the chance to be with those guys, especially Ric.  It's awesome," he said happily.  The men continued talking for awhile, and after a few minutes, the conversation went kind of dry.

"Okay, now that we're done talking about everything else, I have a question," Randy said.

"What is it?" Drew asked, crossing his arms over his chest as he eyed the younger man curiously.

"Who was that girl that walked into the locker room with Stacy and Trish?" he asked, his glance moving over to the door that the two aforementioned divas had just walked out of.

"What girl?" Shawn asked.  Neither he nor Drew had seen the woman, so they had no idea what he was talking about.

"That girl that just went in the locker room with them… she was about 5'7", her hair was pulled back and she had a hat on," he said, trying to think of more.  He hadn't gotten a chance to look at her that intently, but he was intrigued by what he saw.  She was a very pretty girl, and even though he had only had a moment to look at her, he found himself wondering about her.

"I don't know man," Drew said, shrugging his shoulders.

"You know," Shawn said, a thought occurring to him.  "I'll bet it was Michelle… she hangs around with Trish a lot.  And Randy's been out so much over the last seven months that he's probably never met her."  Drew nodded in agreement.

"You're probably right… Chelli's always with Trish, they go back to like middle school or something like that," he said.  Randy raised an eyebrow.

"Chelli?" Randy asked.  "You know her too?  What is she, a new diva or something?"

"Nah, she works with the ring crew, believe it or not.  She could be a diva though, and I think she will be someday," Drew replied.  _Yeah she could_, Randy thought to himself.  Then, he wondered why a woman would be working in the ring crew.  It had to take a lot of mental and physical toughness to do a thankless job like that.  Randy stared at the door to the locker room, thinking of how it was the only real barrier between him and this intriguing new girl.

"I'm gonna head to the catering room, I'm starved.  You guys coming?" Shawn said suddenly, rubbing his stomach.

"Yeah, let's go," Drew agreed, following him as he turned away.  A few moments later, both men turned back, noticing that Randy was hadn't moved.  He was still standing where they had been talking, and he was still staring at the door.

"Yo Randy, let's go!" Drew called, snapping Orton out of his daze.  He shook his head to clear his thoughts, following after the two men.

"Okay, I'm coming!" he called back.  Randy walked down the hallway after the two men, turning to sneak one last glance at the Women's Locker Room door.  He didn't know what it was about this Michelle woman, but he suddenly found himself very interested in finding out.

**Like it?  LOL, let me know!**


	2. Part 2

PART 2

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TWO DAYS LATER

Michelle hummed to herself quietly as she headed down the hotel hallway toward Trish's room.  All the Superstars and WWE personnel had the next day off, so the Canadian diva decided that they needed to do something that night.  She came up with the idea of having a diva slumber party.  All of the Raw divas, as well as Michelle herself, were invited.  She did feel kind of weird, showing up as the only person who wasn't an actual Superstar, but she did fit in like one, so it wasn't so bad.  She was lucky to be on the Raw crew, where every last one of the divas was nice.  She couldn't say she'd heard the same about one or two of the Smackdown women.  She smiled to herself as she thought about how fun it would be for the girls to get together and act like teenagers for a night.  After all the work she had to do during the week, a little relaxation and fun was exactly what Michelle needed.  She finally reached Trish's room, looking up and recognizing the number.  She reached out and grabbed the door knob, twisting it and opening the door.  She peeked inside as the door slowly opened, smiling as she saw many of the girls were already there.  Michelle waved and closed the door behind her as she saw Stacy, Lisa Marie Varon, Lisa Morretti, Terri, Nora Greenwald, and Jacqueline.

"Hey Chelli," they all called, happily waving her over to them.

"Hey guys," she greeted, smiling at the women as she came in a took a seat on the couch next to Stacy.  "How are you all doing?"

"Awesome," Lisa said.  "You know, I went to this store today and I found a pair of shoes for like 20 dollars.  I was so proud of myself… and then, oh my God, the sales clerk!  He was adorable… granted, I was probably about 12 years older than him, but every man needs an older, more mature woman.  So anyway…"

"Shut up!" Stacy, Nora, and Lisa Marie called at the same time, bursting into laughter.  The divas and Michelle all knew that Lisa was a sweetheart, but she would talk non-stop for hours if you didn't shut her up.

"Sorry," the brunette said, shaking her head.  Michelle's eyes shifted around the room… she didn't see Trish anywhere.  Searching around the room, she finally located her friend, standing in the back of the room, in the kitchen area.  She had a tray of food out, and she was setting it up to serve it to her friends.  She stopped working for a second, placing a hand on her forehead in what looked to be pain.  Michelle raised an eyebrow, standing up and deciding to investigate.  She walked over to Trish, placing her hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, you okay?" she asked, concern filling her eyes.  Turning to face her, Trish winced, but nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine… I just have a headache.  I just took something a little while ago, so it should be okay soon.  I was just thinking of how I completely forgot to buy drinks.  We're going to dehydrate," she said, her brown eyes clearly upset.  Michelle laughed… Trish hadn't changed one bit since high school.  Everything she did had to be perfect, right down to the drinks she gave out at parties.

"It's no big deal Trish.  If you want, I can run downstairs to the hotel cafeteria and buy a few bottles of wine," she offered.  Trish frowned, shaking her head.

"Nope, this hotel doesn't serve liquor," she replied.  When she saw Michelle open her mouth again, she put a hand up.  "And you are *not* going to a store to buy anything."

"I know that," she said, laughing again.  "I was going to say I could just grab a few bottles of soda.  The girls won't mind."  Nodding, Trish agreed.

"Okay, thank you so much Chelle… I owe you," she said, patting her on the shoulder.  Michelle shook her head.

"Shut up Trish, I'm buying sodas, not cars," she said, causing both of them to grin.  With that, she stepped out of the way for Trish to carry the tray into the area where the girls were, and then she quietly made her way out the door.

DOWNSTAIRS 

Michelle looked down at the items on the counter in front of her, sighing as she tried to think of a way to carry it all.  She had thought she would be buying about two, possibly three two liter bottles of soda.  With all the crap she carried out and around the ring it shouldn't be a big deal at all.  It hadn't occurred to her that the cafeteria downstairs would _only_ have cans of soda.  Now she was standing there like an idiot, trying to figure out how she was going to carry the fifteen cans of soda she had.  She figured she could have bought one for each girl, but they might be thirsty.  Either way, she knew she was going to have trouble.  She stood at the counter and began piling cans into her arm.  Sighing, she turned, and carefully made her way out of the cafeteria.

On her way back to Trish's room, she stopped, eyeing both the elevator and the stairwell in front of her.  Normally, she'd use the stairs, but she decided that there was no way she would be able to walk up the steps with all those cans when she could barely walk with them.  She walked over and pushed the button, having to try very hard not to drop anything while doing so.  Michelle sighed loudly, leaning up against the wall of the elevator.  By the time she reached the fifth floor, it felt as though her arm were about to fall off.  She exhaled deeply as the door opened and she stepped out of the elevator.  She jumped when she saw someone standing in front of her, obviously waiting to use the elevator themselves.  She looked up, recognizing the person as Randy Orton.  Randy, who was on his way to grab something to eat, felt his eyes shoot up as he saw the young woman in front of him.  It was Trish's friend, the one they had seen go into the women's locker room.  He sent her a small smile as he studied her intently, getting a good look at her face for the first time.  She was even prettier than he'd thought the first time.  Not taking his gaze off of her for a second, his smile widened, and he greeted her.

"Hi… Michelle right?" he asked, causing her to raise an eyebrow.  The two had never been formally introduced… how did he know her name?

"Uh… yeah," she said, a little confused.

"Nice to meet you.  I'm…"

"You're Randy Orton," she said, laughing quietly.  "I know who you are."

"Well, now that we've been introduced, mind if I ask why you're carrying all that soda?" he asked, laughing as he saw at least a dozen cans of soda resting in her arms.  Her arms had to be killing her.

"Oh, yeah…" she started, blushing slightly.  She got a funny feeling in her stomach… not a bad one, but the good kind, the kind you get when you're in high school and a really cute guy approaches you.  Michelle couldn't believe she was turning red already.  _What the hell is wrong with me?_  "I… I'm staying in Trish's room tonight with some of the girls… Trish was upset because she didn't have any drinks for us, so I offered to go and get some.  I didn't think of the fact that they might not have bottles."

"Ah, I see.  Would you like some help?" he offered, placing his hands out.  Michelle shook her head.

"Oh, no, that's okay.  It's just down the hall, and besides… weren't you just about to go somewhere?" she asked.  Suddenly deciding that his hunger would have to wait just a little longer, Randy shook his head.  He wasn't passing up the opportunity to spend a little time with Michelle, even if it was only a walk down the hall.

"No, I insist.  Hand some of them over, you're going to drop them," he said, laughing as she complied and tried to hand some of the sodas off to him.  She didn't notice that while she was transferring the drinks to his hands, the elevator door began to shut.  She hadn't fully stepped out of the doorway yet, but she wasn't in it enough to keep the door open.  Randy laughed loudly as the door caught the back of her foot and she jumped, tossing a few cans as she did so.  Luckily for her, Orton managed to catch the few she dropped before they hit the ground, saving her from what would be a huge mess if it had burst open.

"Thanks," she said, cheeks burning again.  Randy grinned as he noticed the color in her cheeks.

"No problem… you okay?" he asked, watching as she stepped all the way out into the hallway and began walking with him.

"Yeah, I think I'll be just fine."

The two continued on down the hall, and Randy asked Michelle to tell him a little about herself.  She explained that she went to high school with Trish, and that she had a career as a lawyer that went under and that was how she ended up here.  Randy nodded as she spoke… she sounded pretty interesting, just as he'd expected.  Then she mentioned something about wanting to be a wrestler.

"Really?  You want to be a wrestler?" he asked curiously.

"Well, yeah, that's always been my dream… I think it's just a little farfetched," she admitted, looking away from him.

"Bullshit," he said.  "You could do it.  I could help if you want.  I could train you, or continue to train you if you already learned."  Michelle felt the color flushing her face again.  _Stop blushing damn it,_ she told herself.

"Oh, no, I couldn't ask you to do that.  It'd be too much work for you," she said, shaking her head.

"Nonsense," Randy insisted, shaking his head as well.  "And besides, you didn't ask, I offered," he said with a grin.  Looking up at him, Michelle sent him a soft smile.  If she ever wanted a shot in WWE, she would need to brush up on her skills, and Randy *would* be the perfect person to train her.

"You know what?  Okay… I'll do it," she told him.

"Good," he said, grinning.  Michelle opened her mouth to say something, but then realized that they were at Trish's door.  The feeling in her stomach changed, almost to one of regret.

"Oh… I have to go, this is Trish's room.  Thanks a lot Randy," she said graciously, accepting the cans back from him.

"No problem… any time Michelle.  And next time I see you, we can talk about the training, okay?" he asked, placing his hand on the door knob so he could open it for her.  Michelle smiled, a faint fluttering in her heart as she turned back one last time and replied.

"Sounds great."

**Here's the next part!  I'm glad you like it so far… keep reviewing!  *Britney**


	3. Part 3

PART THREE

A FEW MOMENTS LATER

Michelle stepped back into the room, looking up as she saw all of the other divas glances travel to her.  They looked at her like she was insane, and for a minute, Michelle wondered if there was something crawling on her… then she remembered that she had about 15 cans of soda in her hands.

"Are you crazy?" Trish asked, shaking her head as she rushed over to help her.  Handing some of the cans to Trish, Michelle nodded her head, laughing as she did so.

"Of course I am… didn't you know that?" she replied, causing Trish to kick her playfully in the shin.

"I should have known," Trish shot back, rolling her eyes emphatically.  She helped Michelle take the cans over to the table, placing them all down.

"How the hell did you get all these back up to the room?" another voice asked, and Trish and Michelle turned to see Stacy behind them.

"I almost didn't," Michelle answered.  "But then I, uh… I had a little help."  The young woman couldn't hide the smile that crept onto her face as she thought of Randy Orton going out of his way to help her get back to the room.

"I know that look," another voice called, and this time it belonged to Lisa.  The three women turned around to see that they had been joined by all of the girls, every single one.

"And _I_," Terri added, "know that blush.  Okay, spill it.  Which one of our boys helped you carry those cans back here?"  Michelle looked down at the floor, feeling the pink spread even further across her cheeks.

"Well… Randy Orton…" she said quietly, keeping her gaze fixed on the floor below them.  She jumped and had to hold back a laugh when she heard the squeals coming from all the women.

"Awwwwww," they chorused.

"Randy Orton?  He's adorable," Stacy noted, smiling widely.

"Yeah he is," Trish added.  "Well, would you look at that… all of us have to cake on makeup to get someone like him to notice us, and you just snatch him up in your sweatpants with a little lip gloss."  She sent her a look of mock jealously, before breaking into a huge grin.  Michelle shook her head.

"You act like he asked me to marry him… all he did was help me carry the sodas back here, and that was probably only because I nearly dropped them on him as I stepped out of the elevator.  I doubt that I snatched him up," she said, shaking her head.

The more Michelle thought about it, the more she wondered… why _did_ Randy stop to help her?  She supposed it could be because he was just a nice guy, but that just didn't seem to be the whole case.  Part of her wanted to say that the way he was looking at her meant that he liked her, or at least felt that he _could_ like her.  But then there was that other part of her, the side that told her that there was no way a guy like Randy Orton, a 22 year old, completely amazing looking man, could actually like her.  Even though Trish had mentioned something about them having to cake makeup on to get noticed, she had always thought that that was the kind of girl wrestlers liked.  In her own eyes, she was pretty, but plain.  She didn't have the legs that Stacy had and she didn't have the chest that Trish had.  Then again, maybe Randy _did_ like the type of woman that she was… maybe he was sick of all the tall blonde bombshell women.  The more she thought about it, the comment Trish made next really could very well be true.

"We'll see about that Chelli… we'll just wait and see."

THE NEXT WEEK

Michelle was laying around in her hotel room, flipping through the channels on the television.  She yawned tiredly, about to turn her television off, when her cell phone rang.  She jumped, initially startled by the loud noise.  She looked over at the clock on the nightstand, surprised to see that it was nearly one in the morning.  Raising an eyebrow, Michelle wondered who in hell would be calling her at this time of night.  As she got up and stumbled to her phone, thinking maybe she Trish was calling her, but when she reached her phone she didn't recognize the number.

"Hello?" she asked tentatively, still unsure of who was on the other line.

"Hey Michelle, it's Randy."

Michelle pulled the phone away for a moment and looked at it, confused.  "Um… hi," she replied hesitantly.

"I didn't wake you up, did I?" he asked fearfully.  She didn't sound particularly excited to be talking to him.

"No, no… I'm just a little surprised to hear from you, that's all," she explained, hoping she didn't offend him.

"Yeah, it is a little late," he said, laughing quietly.  "Sorry about that."

"It's okay," Michelle insisted.  "What's up?"

"Nothing really," Randy replied.  "I was just wondering if you wanted to start your ring training."  Michelle laughed loudly for a moment, and then she realized that he was serious.

"You mean now?" she asked, a little in disbelief.  She heard Randy laugh quietly on the other end of the line.

"Yeah now… there isn't much time during the day where both of us, as well as the ring itself, are free, so I figured we will have to do most of our training at night.  I understand if you don't want to come now," he said, and Michelle swore there was a hint of disappointment in his tone.

"No, you know what… I'll do it.  Do you want me to just meet you at the arena?" she asked, looking around her room for a pair of sweatpants that she could work out in.

"Yeah, that would be awesome.  I'll see you in a little bit," he said, hanging up.  

Michelle smiled, ending the call and tossing her cell phone to the dresser.  She found a pair of sweatpants and a tee shirt, and she quickly pulled her clothes off and put the new ones on.  She grabbed a pair of sneakers, lacing them up as she made her way to the door.  A week ago, when Randy had told her that he would be glad to train her, she hadn't really taken him seriously.  After all, there wasn't really anything he could gain from doing so.  Still, she wasn't going to pass a chance like this up.  Not only would she be getting some reinforcement wrestling training, she would have the opportunity to spend some time with Randy one on one.  She once again got that funny feeling in her stomach, that nervous 'I'm going to see a guy I like' feeling.  As she grabbed her keycard and exited her hotel room, she found herself no longer tired.  She was actually pretty hyper.

When she got to the arena, she pulled into the lot, parked, and went in a back entrance.  She knew from working there all those late nights that the owners usually left one door open for people like her to come in and do their job.  She headed out into the actual stadium part of the arena, frowning when she noticed that Randy wasn't there.  She walked down the ramp and to the ring, hopping up on the apron and sitting down, resting her back against the bottom rope.  Michelle waited and waited, and then she began to worry.  What if he wasn't coming?  She didn't think he would be the type of guy to stand her up like that, especially after *he* called her, but you could never tell.  Then, she began to think that maybe something happened to him… what if he was in a car accident or something terrible like that?  A million thoughts of why he wasn't there yet raced through her head, so she didn't see or hear the man sneaking up behind her.  He placed his hands over her eyes, and she jumped, screaming out loudly in surprise.  She turned around quickly, smiling and heaving a huge sigh of relief when she saw that Randy was behind her.  He grinned at her, motioning for her to stand and enter the ring.

"You ready?" he asked, watching as she stepped through the ropes and into the ring.

"I hope so," she replied, smiling at him.  She was hoping that maybe with the little things she could remember that she would impress him.  Even if she didn't, she was still eager to learn more, so she was excited to start.

"Let's go."

**Sorry it took so long for the next part… but here it is!!! Review please! =D**


	4. Part 4

PART THREE

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A LITTLE WHILE LATER

Randy jumped up off the mat, looking back at Michelle in disbelief.  She had just executed a nearly perfect dropkick on him.  That wasn't a very complex wrestling move or anything, but to be able to give a perfect one like that on your first day of training was a very impressive feat.

"Wow… that was awesome," he said, stopping for a moment to catch his breath.

"Thanks," Michelle said, looking away to hide her blush.

After a brief pause, the two went back to work, Randy showing her some more basic maneuvers.  As their training time passed, he became more and more impressed with Michelle's skills.  Sure, she wasn't WWE quality just yet, but she already had a good grasp of the ring work and she had loads of potential.  Towards the end of their routine, Randy began to get the feeling that Michelle not only had loads of potential, but that she had loads of practice.  He broke out of the perfect figure-four leg lock she had him in, hopping up to his feet and going over to one of the turnbuckles.  He leaned back against the second rope, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

"You've wrestled before," he said, looking down at her as she sat on the mat.

"I don't know what you're talking about Randy," Michelle replied innocently, though the grin she was sending him was telling a different story.  Randy raised an eyebrow at her, returning the grin.  It surprised him, in the little time they had spent together training, how much he found himself falling for her more and more.

"You must have had training… some of your moves are a little rusty, but for the most part they were almost perfect.  There's no way you could pick this up so quickly," he told her, shaking his head in disbelief.  Michelle shrugged, still grinning at him.

"I guess I'm just a fast learner," she offered, squinting as the light above the ring obstructed her vision.  She shifted over to the right a little until she could see him better.  Randy laughed, shaking his head again.

"You must be," he gave in.  Then, a playful gleam came to his eyes as he saw Michelle standing up.  She moved over to the ropes, turning her back to him as she pulled herself up.  She stood, brushing her clothes of gently, and as she turned back to him, he bolted towards her.  He speared her, knocking her flat on her back, but still making sure to cushion her fall with his arms.  She hit the mad, immediately cracking up.

"What the hell was that for?" she asked, his arms still underneath of her.  He shrugged as best he could, grinning at her.

"One thing you obviously haven't learned yet… *never* turn your back on an opponent," he said, trying to keep a straight face.

"I'll have to remember that one," Michelle replied, nodding.

Randy moved one of his arms out from beneath her, but he didn't move.  For some reason, he felt as though he couldn't get up… like he was glued to her or something.  He looked down at her, meeting her blue eyes.  She gazed back up at him, sending him a slightly confused look.  Michelle didn't know what was going on… Randy was laying half on top of her, half on the mat.  As they continued to stare at each other, Michelle wondered what was going on in Randy's mind.  He was looking at her like, well… almost like he was going to kiss her.  She got that feeling in her stomach again, much like the one she had gotten on the night where he had helped her carry the sodas to Trish's room.  A moment later, Randy did just that… he dipped his hand down, capturing her lips with his.  Michelle sighed contentedly as she opened her mouth and allowed his tongue to slide in… she couldn't get over how soft his lips were.  She also couldn't get over the way his hand felt sliding down the side of her waist.  But what she really couldn't get over was the fact that he, Randy Orton, one of the hottest men on the planet, had just kissed her.  It was over all too soon, and when it was, she smiled at him.  Her smile faded when she saw that he had a very uneasy look in his eyes.  _Shit_, he thought to himself.  _That wasn't how I wanted it to happen._  Randy had envisioned their first kiss being something a little more romantic than this, anywhere but after rolling around in the ring for an hour.  She probably thought that he was the biggest pervert in the world for kissing him.  He quickly pushed himself off of her, jumping up and heading out of the ring.  Michelle sent him the most confused look she could manage as he turned back to face her while going up the ramp.

"I'm sorry," he said, turning and exiting, leaving her to sit in the ring alone and wonder what the hell had just happened.

THE NEXT DAY 

Trish was talking to Stacy as she headed down the hallway to the catering room.  The two women had just gotten back from the gym, and were heading to grab something to eat.  As they continued on down the hall, two blonde haired men came over to her, stopping them and pulling them to the side.

"Hey girls," Chris Irvine said, as Jay Reso waved from behind him.

"Hey Chris, hey Jay," the two divas replied, and Trish raised an eyebrow at Chris, who currently had a grip on her forearm.

"What's up?" she asked, looking down at his hand.  He pulled away from her, eyeing the fellow Canadian with his ice blue eyes.

"I think you need to go talk to your friend Michelle like now," he said seriously.  Trish looked up at him, raising an eyebrow.

"Why?  Is she okay?" Trish asked, a hint of worry beginning to show on her pretty face.  She couldn't think of any other reason why Chris would tell her she had to go see her right away.

"Well, we went in the catering room and we saw her sitting in the back," Jay answered for him.  "She looked pretty upset, so we went over and asked her about it."

"And what did she say?" Stacy asked, a look of curiosity and concern forming on her face as well.  Jay shrugged, looking at the two blonde women somberly.

"She didn't say much of anything… just that she was fine, and that she was just thinking about something.  She looked like she was about to cry though, so I told Chris we should find you so you could go talk to her," he explained.

"Yeah, she'd probably rather talk to you over us anyway," Chris agreed, nodding.

"Okay," Trish said, nodding as well.  "I'll go see her right away.  Thanks for telling me guys."  Jay and Chris nodded, heading off in the direction of their locker room.  Trish glanced over at the leggy blonde standing next to her as they walked on and neared the catering room.  She glanced in, catching a glimpse of Michelle.  As Jay said, she was sitting in the back of the room, and she didn't look too happy.  Trish turned to Stacy, placing her hand gently on her upper arm.

"I better go talk to her alone.  I'll see you later Stace," she said, waving goodbye and walking over to Michelle.  She sat down next to her best friend on the couch, and it was obvious to Trish that Michelle hadn't noticed her.

"Chelli?  You okay?" she asked, her chocolate brown eyes still filled with a look of concern.  Michelle jumped upon hearing the familiar voice, picking her head up and glancing over at Trish.  She nodded, putting on the best smile she could, though it was far from sincere.

"I'm fine… why?" she asked, pretending to be confused.

"Don't lie to me Michelle.  Something's up… I just want to know what it is," she requested, shifting slightly in her seat and placing her hand on the middle of Michelle's back.  The brunette shook her head… she couldn't tell Trish about what had happened with Randy.  It wasn't that she didn't trust Trish, it was just that she wasn't even sure of what her own feelings were… she just couldn't concern herself with the opinion that Trish would undoubtedly have about the situation.

"Nothing's wrong Trish.  I'm fine, really.  I… I have to go, I'll talk to you later," she said quickly, excusing herself from the room.  

The second she burst out the catering room door the tears hit her eyes.  What was wrong with her?  Why would Randy kiss her like that and then run away?  Was she *that* bad of a kisser?  Did he not really want to kiss her?  Michelle didn't understand what had happened at all.  All she knew was that she liked the kiss… and it was quite apparent that there was something about it that Randy *didn't* like.  She couldn't help but wonder if maybe she had done something wrong… _But *he* kissed *me*.  _She just couldn't figure it out.  Michelle was falling for Randy, and she was falling hard and fast.  What was she going to do if she found out that that kiss meant absolutely nothing to him?  She made a futile attempt to wipe the tears away from her eyes, but they kept right on coming.  As she turned around a hallway corner, she dropped her purse, the black bag hitting the ground and some of its contents spilling out.

"Shit," she muttered as she leaned down to pick the things up.  She picked up her mascara and wallet, tucking them back in.  Then, when she went to reach for her lip-gloss, another hand grabbed it at the same time.  Michelle looked up, gasping when her teary eyes met a pair of intense light blue eyes.

Reaching his hand up and wiping a tear from her eye was Randy Orton.

**Once again, sorry I took so long!!!  I hope this chapter's good enough to make up for the length it took me to update!  Review please, and thanks for all the ones so far!!  **Britney**


	5. Part 5

PART FIVE

****

A MOMENT LATER

Randy's eyes fixed themselves on Michelle.  Her own eyes widened in surprise… she certainly hadn't expected to see Randy at all after he had walked out on her at the arena.  He pulled his hand away from her face, looking genuinely concerned.

"Are you okay?" he asked, fearful that he had something to do with her tears.  Michelle nodded her head.

"Sure, I'm fine," she lied.  "Don't worry about it."  She made a motion to stand, but Randy grabbed her by the arm, pulling her back down to the floor.

"Can we talk?" he asked, hoping that she would agree out of the kindness of her heart.  He knew that he had a lot of explaining to do, and he was willing to do it.  Squatting on the floor again, Michelle rested back on her heels.

"I… I don't know Randy," Michelle answered warily.  Randy sighed, standing up.

"Please Michelle, I just want to talk to you about the other night… I know I have a lot to explain to you," he said, looking down at her.  Michelle said nothing, simply staring up at him, the same cautious look in her eye.  _Come on, please say yes,_ he thought to himself.

"Please, just give me an opportunity to explain.  Come to my locker room with me, just so we can discuss it," he pleaded, extending his hand to her.  Michelle sighed, giving in and reaching out to grasp his hand.  He pulled her up off the ground, keeping his fingers linked with hers as he led her to his locker room.  Once inside, he pulled the door shut, gesturing to the leather couch across the room.

"Where are Paul and Ric?" Michelle asked as she sat down, referring to Randy's Evolution buddies Paul Levesque and Ric Flair, whom he shared a locker room with.

"They went to find a decent gym… they only left a few minutes ago, they won't be back for awhile," Randy replied.  He stood in front of Michelle, pacing back and forth for a minute before finally sitting down next to her.

"Look," he started, a hint of apprehensiveness in his tone.  "I just wanted to say that I'm really sorry about the other night.  I crossed the line when I kissed you, and I'm really sorry if I upset you," he said seriously.  Michelle sighed wistfully as her eyes met his.

"Randy, I wasn't upset that you kissed me," she explained.  "What upset me was that you walked away.  It was like you were deserting me or something and I didn't know if it was because you didn't like the kiss or you didn't really want to kiss me or whatever.  It almost made me feel like I did something wrong."

Randy laughed, "Oh, you did nothing wrong, trust me.  I enjoyed kissing you very much."

"But that's what I don't understand.  If you liked the kiss, then why did you ditch me like that?" she asked.  Randy shrugged, knowing that he really didn't have a reason.  There really *wasn't* any reason that would justify what he did.

"I… I'm really not sure," he replied.  "I guess I was just afraid.  Afraid you'd be mad, afraid you wouldn't like it… whatever, just chalk it up to fear.  I wasn't sure how you would react.  I really like you Michelle… I don't want a stupid kiss to screw up my chances with you."

Michelle felt a small smile playing on her lips after Randy's comments.  He was so sweet, and apparently so insecure, though she had no idea why a man like him would have any doubts about himself.  On top of that, he actually liked her.  She had *never* envisioned this happening… not in a million years.  If anything she thought it would be *her* throwing herself at *him*, not the other way around.

"Wow," she breathed.  "I-I had no idea that you felt that way."  Randy sent a tiny, adorable little grin, one that damn near made her melt.

"Well, I do.  Every since the first time I saw you I've been so intrigued by you.  I'd really love to spend more time with you and get to know you, if that's okay with you," he suggested hopefully.  Michelle grinned widely… did he actually think she would say no to that?

Getting a sudden boost of self confidence, she decided to be daring… she leaned over and kissed him, shifting in her seat so that she was sitting right next to him.  He placed his hand on her knee, his other hand reaching out to caress her cheek as she opened her mouth and his tongue slid in.  As the hand on her cheek slowly inched its way down the side of her body, Michelle brought her arms up, wrapping them around his neck.  He leaned forward, gently pushing her onto her back as his arms wrapped around her back.  Randy shifted his body so that he was half on top of her, their kiss becoming more deep and passionate than ever.  Randy finally broke the kiss so that the two of them could catch their breath.

"Do you…" he started, panting slightly from his lack of oxygen, until Michelle placed her index finger on his lips, silencing him.

"I do," she replied, smiling. 

Randy grinned as well, leaning down to capture her lips again.  Michelle sighed contentedly as Randy's soft lips brushed over her neck and chest.  Randy moved his hands down to her waist, his fingers fumbling with her belt buckle.  Her fingers lazily danced across his back, until he hooked his hands under the hem of her shirt.  She put her arms up as he lifted the shirt up and over her head, tossing it to the floor.  She pushed him away slightly so that she could return the favor, lifting off the tank top he had been wearing.  Randy kissed her again, his fingers running over the red lace material of her bra.  Michelle pushed him off of her for a moment, just so she could admire him.  _My God,_ she thought.  Randy's toned body was nothing short of amazing. If he looked so damn good like this, she could only imagine how he would look with *nothing* on.  She looked up and met his blue eyes, which were sending her a questioning look.  He wondered why she had pushed him off of her like that.  He began to worry that maybe he was pushing her a little too much, that maybe she wasn't comfortable with what was going on.

"Do you want me to stop?" he asked.  Michelle looked at him like he was crazy, undoing the button on his jeans as she did so.  Laughing, she shook her head.

"Are you crazy?" she asked, pulling down the zipper as well.  

Randy grinned, kissing her again and reaching behind her back to unhook her bra.  As he tossed that to the floor, he kicked out of his jeans and focused his attention on getting off her pants.  He kissed his way down her body, stopping at her stomach.  As she lifted her hips to help him slide her pants down her legs, Michelle glanced over at the door, grinning widely…

_I hope it's locked._

**Hey everyone!!  Glad you're liking this so far, and thanks for all the reviews, they mean a hell of a lot to me.  Keep them coming!!!**


	6. Part 6

PART SIX

****

THE NEXT MORNING

Michelle slowly opened her eyes, glancing around the room.  Her eyes found a clock, which read 9:59 AM, and she stretched.  It wasn't until she went to move that she realized that there was an arm wrapped around her waist.  It was also then when she realized that she was very naked.  Raising an eyebrow curiously, she shifted around so that she could see who was behind her.  Michelle smirked as she saw Randy Orton lying there, still sound asleep.  She eyed him intently, her gaze traveling down his bare torso, pausing where his skin met the white bed sheet.  Michelle bit her lip to prevent herself from giggling as she eyed him playfully.  Bringing her left hand over, she carefully and cautiously peeled the sheet away.  As much as she tried, she couldn't hold back a gasp as she admired his still naked body.  He was perfect… it was like he was one of those old Greek statues, with nothing on his body having any flaw to it whatsoever.  _He's fucking gorgeous,_ Michelle thought to herself.  _There is no better way to describe him._  She gawked at him for a long moment, and then carefully covered him again, laughing at herself.  She couldn't believe that she had done that.   What she really couldn't believe was that she and Randy *actually* had sex, not only at the arena, but at the hotel in Randy's room as well.

She sighed contentedly, resting her head back against her pillow.  She laid there silently for a minute, listening to the steady sound of Randy's breathing, and then she jumped.  Her eyes darted back to the clock, which now read 10:08 AM.  She practically leaped out of the bed as she remembered that she was supposed to be at the arena to help assemble the ring and set at 10:30.  As she sat on the edge of the bed, her eyes searched the room frantically in a hunt for her clothes.  There was no way she'd have time for a shower, or even to run back to her room to get new clothes, so she was just going to have to wear the ones she had worn the night before.  She finally found them, carelessly discarded on the floor in front of an arm chair up against the wall.  She quickly made her way over and grabbed them, stepping into her thong as she made her way back to the bed.  First, she took the red lace bra she had been wearing the day before, clasped it behind her back and carefully slid it up and adjusted it.  Then, as she was sliding her legs into her jeans, she felt a hand on her shoulder.  Next, she felt the same hand moving and swiping the hair away from her shoulder, followed by a soft pair of lips brushing against her neck.  Michelle grinned… somebody was awake.  She turned her head slightly, smiling as she found Randy's blue eyes staring up at her.  Michelle opened her mouth to speak, only to be cut off by Randy's tongue, which he gently thrust into her mouth.  She sighed into his mouth as his tongue swept against hers, regretfully breaking the kiss only when she felt as though she was about to lose herself in him again.

"Randy…" she murmured quietly, speaking for the first time that day.

"Hmm?" he asked, planting kisses on her neck and shoulder line.

"I… I have to go," she said weakly.  She really needed to get to work, but doing so would be damn near impossible if Randy kept up what he was doing.  Shifting on the bed so that he was next to her, he pushed her back on to her pillow.

"Aw, why?" he asked in a disappointed tone.  "Can't you stay just a *little* longer?"  He paused from what he was doing and looked up at Michelle, sending her a sexy little pout.  Michelle laughed quietly, leaning down and kissing him on the top of his forehead.

"I don't *want* to Randy… but I have to go to work," she insisted, gently pushing him off of her.  Randy sighed disappointedly, backing away and allowing her to stand.  He watched as she buttoned her pants and slid her shirt on, smiling at him.

"I'll see you in a little while," she said to him.

"You got it," he replied, winking at her as she walked to the door, grabbing her purse off the table on the way.  When she was at the door, she turned back once more, smiling as she got a glimpse of Randy lying in the bed, still staring at her.  Once she was outside the door, Michelle closed it and leaned against it.  She smiled and closed her eyes as she thought about the experience she had had.  She sighed loudly…

What a night.

AT THE ARENA 

After Michelle finished up helping the boys with the set, she headed to the back, checking her watch along the way.  It was still fairly early, and she remembered that Randy was scheduled for an appearance with Ric Flair, so he wouldn't be arriving at the arena until later on in the afternoon.  Michelle did, however, know someone who would be there, and she needed to talk to that someone.  She quickly made her way through the halls, still unable to wipe the grin off of her face even though it was hours later.  She found the room she was looking for, ran her fingers over the door and knocked lightly, pushing it open as she did so.  Once she got inside the room, she quickly found who she was looking for.

"Hey Trish," she called, getting the blonde woman's attention.

"Hey!" Trish replied, smiling brightly as she dropped her magazine and stood, walking over to her.  Michelle grabbed Trish by the arm, leading her out the door.

"I have to talk to you," she said, still holding on to her.  "Ill see you guys later!" she called to the other women in the room.

"Bye!" they called simultaneously, turning and waving.  Once they were outside the door, Trish turned to Michelle and raised an eyebrow.

"So… what do you have to tell me?" she asked curiously.  Michelle sent Trish a coy smile, her eyes looking down at meeting the floor.

"Well… I just thought I'd tell you how – and with who – I spent my night last night," she replied plainly.

"With who?" Trish asked first.  It was pretty much obvious by her statement what Michelle had done, so now Trish's main concern was with who.

"Well, he's tall, brown hair, blue eyes, completely gorgeous, and he's…"

"Michelle Preston, did you have sex with Randy Orton?" Trish asked incredulously, her eyes widening as Michelle nodded.

"Do you believe that?!  Isn't it awesome?!" she squealed, grinning widely.  Her grin faded, however, when Trish didn't react the way she had expected.  She was expecting her friend to be happy for her, and equally as excited as she was.  Trish wasn't even smiling.  She didn't look happy at all… in fact, she almost looked disappointed.

"Trish, isn't that awesome?" she asked again.  Trish looked down at the floor for a moment, shaking her head slowly.

"Michelle, don't you… don't you think it was a little soon to have sex with him?" she asked seriously, her tone full of concern.  Michelle shrugged, sending Trish a confused look.

"I guess it was a little early, but come on… it's Randy Orton," she pointed out, grinning at her best friend.  Trish still didn't look convinced that what she did was a good idea.

"Exactly," she said pointedly, causing Michelle to raise an eyebrow.  "Chelli, listen.  I don't know how Randy's been acting since he returned from his foot injury, but he's always been more or less a player.  I don't want you getting too attached to him, okay?"

"But there's something between us Trish, I just know it!" Michelle insisted.  "Look, maybe he was a bit of a ladies man before, but I really think he likes me Trish.  The things he said to me last night, they were…"

"They were probably something he's said to a million other women," Trish interrupted skeptically.  "I'm sorry to sound so negative about all this, but it's how I feel.  I don't want you getting hurt, and that's exactly what you're setting yourself up for.  I like Randy, he's a nice guy, but he's not the kind of guy you form a relationship with.  Please, just promise me you won't take this thing between you guys too seriously."  Trish eyed Michelle hopefully, praying that she would take her advice.

"Oh, okay," she agreed finally, though it was only half-heartedly.  Trish grinned.

"Good.  Now, I've got to go, but I will talk to you a little later, okay?" she said, patting her friend on the shoulder.

"Sure.  See ya Trish," Michelle said, waving goodbye as Trish disappeared down the hall.

Once she was gone, Michelle leaned up against the wall, sighing.  That certainly hadn't been the reaction she was expecting from Trish.  She thought for a moment about what she said.  _"… he's a nice guy, but he's not the kind of guy you form a relationship with."  _Maybe Trish was right.  Maybe Randy *didn't* want to be with her in the sense that she had thought he did.  If that was the case, then the previous night was a huge mistake on her part.  She frowned as she pushed herself off the wall and headed back down the hallway…

Maybe it just wasn't meant to be.

**Hey everyone!! Hope you're still enjoying the story!  Make sure ya review, and thanks for all the reviews I've gotten already!!**


	7. Part 7

PART SEVEN

****

LATER THAT NIGHT

Randy headed to the backstage area after his match, wiping the sweat off of his forehead tiredly.  As he walked through the halls with Ric Flair and Paul Levesque, he kept his eyes open for Michelle.  He hadn't seen her all day, not since she'd left his hotel room that morning.  Actually, he had seen her once, in the hallway by the women's locker room.  He had called her name, but when she looked over and saw him, she turned away and went into the room, almost like she didn't want to see him.  He hoped nothing was wrong.  Needless to say, his eyes darted around the halls in search of her, while Paul and Ric had a conversation around him.

"…so what do you think Randy?" Paul's voice cut into his thoughts suddenly.  Orton shook his head, snapping himself out of his daze as he turned to face his partner.

"I, uh… I'm sorry, what were you saying?" he asked, confused.  Ric sent him a questioning look.

"What's been up with you lately man?  Your head's been floating on a different planet or something, ever since…"

"Ever since he started hanging around with Michelle," Paul said knowingly, sending Randy a teasing smile.  Randy's eyes lit up at the mention of her name.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he challenged, crossing his arms in front of him and stopping in front of the Evolution locker room door.  Paul shrugged, silly grin still plastered on his face.

"Oh nothing, except that you've only been spending every waking minute of the past 48 hours with her.  I'm starting to think you love her more than me," he said, sniffling playfully.  Randy laughed quietly, shaking his head.  Sometimes he wondered who was the older of the two of them.

"Oh Paul, you know there's a special place in my heart reserved especially for you," he replied, winking at him. 

Paul laughed, shaking his head as Randy opened the door to the locker room and stepped inside.  Ric walked past Paul as well, following Randy inside.  Just as Levesque was about to go in the room, he heard voices coming from down the hall… women's voices.  He turned his head, noticing Trish, Stacy, and Michelle, standing out in the hallway talking.  Thinking that his younger friend might be interested in seeing Michelle, he stepped into the locker room and called out to him.

"Randy!" he yelled to the young man, who had already headed to the shower.  Randy popped out, still wearing his wrestling trunks.  "Your girlfriend's outside if you want to see her."

"She is?  Great, thanks Paul," he said, patting his friend on the shoulder as he walked out of the locker room.

"Man, is he whipped or what?" Ric spoke up in disbelief, shaking his head and smiling.  Not that it wasn't to see Randy with someone to spend time with.  He knew better than anyone after all the years that it could get very lonely on the road.

"Definitely," Paul agreed.  "It's worse than I thought too."  As he finished his statement, he broke into laughter, standing in the open doorway.  Flair raised an eyebrow.

"Why's that?" he asked curiously.  Paul, who was still laughing, pointed at Randy, who was walking in the direction of the women.  The World Heavyweight Champion sighed, finally answering.

"He's so excited about going to see her that he doesn't even realize he only has one boot on."

*                      *                      *                      *                      *

Randy slowly approached the women, all of whom had their backs to him.  He stepped up behind them, watching with all as they held a conversation… if you could call it that.  His eyes followed their mouths as they all spoke at the same time, each woman trying to take control of the conversation.  He would never understand how they could even comprehend each other when they spoke like that.  Women…

"Um, hey guys," he said suddenly, his deep voice cutting into their discussion and causing them to all stop speaking.  The three blonde women turned around to see who had interrupted them.

"Hey Randy," Stacy said cheerily, deciding to be the first to greet him.  Randy sent her a warm smile, waving as well.

"What's up ladies?" he asked, his eyes now focusing on Michelle.  She looked up at him briefly, but after meeting his blue eyes, hers darted down and locked on the floor.

"Nothing really," Trish replied.  Then, she glanced over at her best friend, eyeing her silently.  Now would be a good time for her and Randy to talk things over.  "Stacy and I were just talking about going to see Drew.  I haven't talked to him in awhile."  Stacy glanced over at Trish, raising an eyebrow at her.

"We weren't…"

"Yes we were!  In fact, we were just leaving!" Trish cut her off, grabbing her tiny wrist and pulling her away, leaving Michelle and Randy to stand outside the women's locker room door alone.  Michelle sent Trish a murderous glare.  

"Bitch," she mouthed to her, to which Trish grinned and winked playfully.  She shook her head, turning to once again face Randy.

"So…" Randy said, placing a hand on his waist and leaning against the wall.

"So…"

Michelle had to force herself to keep her eyes off of him.  She knew that if she so much as passed a glance at him, she would melt.  He just had this power over her, one that he didn't even realize he obtained.  One look at him – especially if it was in the eyes – and she was done… her knees got watery, she couldn't speak, she couldn't think.  There was something about the way being around him made her feel… it excited her, it thrilled her…

It also scared the shit out of her.

Michelle couldn't help but think of what Trish had told her earlier, about Randy not being the relationship type.  If that was the case, and Randy didn't share any of the feelings she had, then she didn't want to be associated with him.  It just wasn't fair to her to be with someone who only liked her to have sex with her.  She should have *known* not to just jump in bed with him.  She supposed the angst she was feeling right now was her punishment for going against her beliefs.

"So, what are you doing tonight after the show?  I was thinking maybe we could go and get something to eat or something," Randy suggested.  Michelle frowned, finally daring to look up at him.

"I-I don't think that's a good idea Randy," she said, looking down at the floor again.  Randy was confused, but he shrugged it off.

"Okay… maybe some other time soon then?" he asked hopefully, frowning when she shook her head.

"No.  Randy, listen, I think it would be best if we just stopped everything now.  We can't see each other anymore," she said sadly, kicking the ground softly with her foot.  She noticed that he was only wearing one boot, but to refrain from derailing the conversation any further, she said nothing of it.

"What?  Why not?" he asked, obviously hurt.

"Because we just can't, that's all," she replied plainly.  

Not satisfied with her answer, Randy gently placed his hand under her chin, carefully tilting her face up so that she was looking up at him.  His stomach dropped when he noticed that tears had filled her eyes.  He had made her cry… but how?  All he did was ask her out again… wasn't that what she wanted?  All he knew was that he couldn't *stand* to see women crying.  It made him want to pull her to him and hug her tightly, to take whatever it was that was hurting her and destroy it.  The only problem with that was that it was *him* that upset her so much.

"What is it?  What's wrong?" he asked worriedly, wincing as a tear slipped out and slid down her cheek.  Shaking her head, Michelle pried his hand off of her, blinking the tears back and taking a deep breath.  

"Nothing, I just… I have to go," she said, turning promptly on her heel and speeding away from him.

Once she was gone, Randy sighed, rubbing his temples soothingly.  What the hell was that about?  He had no intentions of hurting her, but he must have if she started crying out of the blue like that.  To add insult to injury, she had rejected him.  He had *never* been turned down  before.  It was just his luck… all of the other women who dated him in a heartbeat were worthless compared to the one that turned him away.  He just didn't understand.  Why?  He sighed again…

"What did I do?"

**Hey!  Sorry once again for taking so long to update… hope you like it!**


	8. Part 8

PART EIGHT

TWO MONTHS LATER

Michelle stepped up to the locker room door of Evolution, knocking firmly and waiting. A few moments later, the door opened and Dave Batista appeared in the doorway. He smiled down at her, holding the door open so she could enter.

"Hey kid," he said, walking over to a table up against the wall as she plopped down on the couch. "What's up?"

"Oh, nothing... nothing at all. I'm pretty bored actually," Michelle replied, reclining back on the couch.

"Yeah?" Dave said, picking up a bottle of water off the table and turning back to her. "Where's Trish?" Michelle's eyes lit up a tthe mention of her best friend's name.

"I don't know Dave. I thought maybe *you* would know where she was," she said, a mischievous gleam in her eyes.

"Why would I know where she is?" he asked innocently. Michelle laughed at the almost nervous tone in his voice. He could play dumb all he wanted, but she knew better.

"Please Dave... you know you like Trish. Hell, *all* of us know it, you're just too scared to admit it. Come on, you two have been inseperable for the past few weeks," she replied. Dave exhaled loudly, smiling at her.

"So?" he asked, to which Michelle rolled her eyes.

"So... did you tell her yet?" she asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest expectantly. The smile faded off of Dave's face, and he fell silent.

"You didn't," Michelle said, answering her own question. "Dave, you *have* to tell Trish that you like her." Dave shrugged, his head dropping between his shoulders.

"I-I don't know Chelli. I just have a bad feeling about doing that," he said quietly. Michelle raised an eyebrow.

"What are you scared of, Dave? That she won't like you? Trust me, I *know* Trish, and I know that she likes you. You have nothing to worry about." When she saw that his uneasy expression still remained, she sent him a small smile of reassurance. He sighed, rubbing his eyes.

"It's not that. I mean, I wasn't worried that she wouldn't like me back... I feel the chemistry between us. I just... I feel like I'd be ruining her reputation in a way. She's a pretty, easy going girl, and everybody just loves her. Me, on the other hand... well, I'm just a..."

"A caring, loyal, sweet guy... one I know that my best friend would love to be with. Your selling yourself short, Dave. Just because you and Trish are from different crowds, but that doesn't mean you can't be together," she cut him off, her voice strong and firm. She had no clue why, but Dave could have the *worst* streaks of insecurity.

"But everyone would think..."

"Fuck what everybody else thinks. All that matters is what you and Trish think," Michelle interrupted again. "I want you to promise me something, Dave. Promise me you'll tell Trish how you feel, and that you won't let other people's opinions stop you." Dave hesitated replying... he iwanted/i to talk to Trish, he just wasn't sure he could.

"Michelle, I..."

"Hey..." another male voice called. 

Michelle and Dave turned their heads, watching as Randy Orton stepped up to them, fresh from the showers. iSaved by the Orton,/i Dave thought to himself. He then quietly excused himself from the room, leaving the couple alone. Randy wattched as the door shut behind Dave, and then he slowly made his way over to Michelle, sitting down next to her. Before she even got a chance to greet him, Randy cupped her face with his hand and kissed her, his tongue tracing along her bottom lip before slowly entering her mouth. Michelle sighed against him... God, he was a good kisser. She allowed the kiss to continue on, but eventually she needed to come up for air, so the blonde woman reluctantly broke it off.

"Nice to see you too," she said, smiling brightly. Randy returned her grin, leaning in and kissing her once more.

Things between the two of them were definitely less angsty than what was going on with their two friends, Trish and Dave. Just about two months earlier, Randy and Michelle had officially become an item. As the weeks passed, Michelle found herself falling more and more in love with the young man from St. Louis. Physical attributes aside, Randy was a beautiful person... one who was apparently very misunderstood. Michelle had heard countless stories - from wrestlers, employees backstage, fans, and the media alike - about how Randy was a huge party animal. She had heard so many stories about his late night partying, as well as his numerous affairs with women he met on the road. She found all of the rumors almost comical because of how false they were. Randy didn't party *nearly* as much as was reported he did, and when he did go out to a bar or club, Michelle was always by his side. Wherever they went, Randy's arm was always looped around her waist.

That was another thing Michelle loved about Randy. Of all the women he had to choose from - and there were certainly plenty of readily available women willing to throw themselves and Randy's feet and kiss the ground he walked on - he chose her. It made her feel alive, beautiful, wanted... just out and out loved. Their kiss broke once more, and she smiled up at him.

"So," she said. "Did you find out what type of match you have tonight?" Randy nodded, his arm resting around Michelle's shoulder as he pulled her to him, holding her close.

"Yup... Dave, Ric and I have a six man tag match against the Dudleys," he told her.

"Sounds good," Michelle replied, snuggling up against him.

"Yeah, it should be," Randy agreed. "I think it'd be cool to have some more matches with them in a future." 

Michelle nodded her agreement. What the two of them didn't know was that Randy *wouldn't* be competing in many matches against the Dudleys in the near future...

**Hey all! Hope you like the latest chapter.  Just a little note to Michelle – Nash will be appearing soon enough!  Just didn't want you to think I'd forgotten him. =)  You guys know what to do!**


	9. Part 9

PART 9

Michelle found herself standing at the gorilla position, her head poking between a small opening in the curtains so that she could keep her eye on Randy's match. Though it was Dave and Bubba Dudley who were currently in the ring wrestling, she kept her gaze steadily locked on Randy, who was standing in the far corner, gripping the tag ropes as he talked to Ric Flair. She studied his handsome face carefully, smiling with pride as he was tagged into the match. Suddenly, she felt a tap on her shoulder, causing her to jump slightly. She turned to see who had wanted her attention, her brows raising in amusement when she saw Trish Stratus standing behind her.

"Hey Trish," she called with a grin, turning her attention back to the match. "Come to watch Davey wrestle?" Swatting her best friend playfully on the arm, Trish shook her head. Michelle was *such* a little kid sometimes.

"If you're talking about _Dave_, then yes, I did," she replied. "Besides, I figured you'd be here drooling over Randy, so I thought I'd drop by and see how that was going."

"Now Trish, let's not change the subject. What's going on with you and Dave?" Michelle asked, tossing her gaze back in Trish's direction, refusing to allow her to escape the subject.

"Nothing," the blonde woman insisted, putting her hands up in protest. "We're just friends. He's cute, I like hanging out with him... we'll see."

The two women exchanged grins, before pausing their conversation to check out the action in the ring. Their eyes lit up as a few hard hits were exchanged, and somehow all six men ended up in the ring. The men began to race around the ring in a blur, bodies flying and colliding all over the place. What was shaping up to be an awesome bout took a turn for the worse when Dave, Randy, and Bubba collided. The three men fell in a large heap to the mat, each one crying out in pain.

The eyes of both women widened as referee Earl Hebner poked his head down into the pile to check on each of the men, concern washing over his face as none of the three men were giving him good responses. He considered calling for the bell, but somehow, Bubba rolled over Dave and covered him for the pin, ending the match a bit prematurely. 

Bubba was the first man to his feet, having his partner D'Von pull him off the mat, the burly man holding onto his back as he gingerly made his way out of the ring, walking very slowly up the ramp. Next, Dave slowly made his way up, grimacing as he held his right arm tightly. Trish breathed a sigh of relief as she watched him stand, though she was almost positive he did something awful to his arm. He looked to be in some intense pain. Her gaze stayed locked on him as he and Ric hopped out of the ring, waiting for Randy. Trish's gaze traveled over to Michelle, who was standing beside her, one hand placed over her mouth to hide the fact that it was gaping open.

Michelle's hand dropped from her mouth to her chest, rubbing it as her heart skipped about ten beats. As Bubba and D'Von pushed past the two women on their way back to the trainer's room, her stomach dropped. Why hadn't Randy gotten up yet? She stood up on her tip toes, trying to get a better view of what was going on in the ring. Terror began to build rapidly in her eyes as the minutes ticked by and Randy *still* hadn't moved. A few of the trainers had since made their way to the ring, huddling over the young man to the point where it was damn near impossible to see him.

Relief coursed through her as the men separated a bit, and she was able to see that they were helping Randy to his feet. The moment he was up, though, the concern flooded back to her. He looked to be in some serious pain, and he wasn't putting _any_ weight on his right leg. Placing his arms over two of the trainers' shoulders, he made a gesture to his foot, wincing in anguish as they slowly made their way out of the ring. Trish placed a hand on Michelle's shoulder, holding onto her just in case she decided to make a run for her boyfriend. The two women stepped back as the huddled mass of men pushed through the curtain, Trish opting to stay back while Michelle rushed up to her boyfriend. Her view of the two was blocked when a massive figure stepped in front of her. Trish glanced up, meeting the dark eyes of Dave Batista.

"Dave!" she cried, realizing that while being wrapped up in her concern for Randy, she had completely forgotten that Dave too had been hurt. "Are you okay? What happened out there?"

"I'm fine," he replied, continuing when he noted the look of disbelief on the tiny diva's face. "Really, I am. I think I dislocated my shoulder. I should only miss a few weeks, Trish, really."

Trish eyed him curiously for a moment, wondering if he was telling the whole truth. He looked to be in a great deal of pain, but from the sound of his voice, he didn't seem to be all that hurt. A small smile played on her lips as she thanked God he wasn't severely injured. Then, her gaze traveled to the pair behind Dave, and her grin faltered.

"Dave..." Trish began, a troubled look crossing her features as he watched Michelle tending to Randy. "Is Randy alright?" Dave eyes wandered over to the pair behind him, and he frowned.

"To be honest, it didn't look to good out there," he answered bluntly. "I think his foot or toe is completely broken... he couldn't move it at all."

"Oh no," she voiced in a hushed tone, the hope she held for Randy's safety dropping from her chest.

The two shifted into silence, Dave turning and standing next to Trish as they watched the trainers closing in on Randy, at the same time shoving Michelle out of the circle. Growing frustrated, she tossed her hands in the air, turning her back on the crowd of men and storming back over to where Trish and Dave were standing. When she glanced over at the pair, Trish could plainly see the tears threatening to escape her eyes.

"Chelli, I'm sorry," she said quietly, placing a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder.

Shrugging out of Trish's grasp, Michelle turned away, following solemnly as the trainers sat Randy down on a stretcher, wheeling him out as the young man fought not to cry out in pain. She knew, as she watched them wheel him out, that he was going to be on the shelf for awhile. That meant he was going to be off the road...

And that meant she'd have to be without him.

A/N: I know it's been months since we've had an update!  I'm really sorry about that, but I've been trying to get my fics squared away, so I put this one on a little hiatus.  Not sure when the next chapter will be up, but I'll try and make it quicker!  Hope you're all still with me!


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